Universal outlet or junction box.



PATENTED SEPT, 3, 1907. 3.14. GLEASON,

OUTLET OR JU APPLICATION FILED MAY 31. 1906.

JEN BOX.

UNIVERSAL JOHNI-L. GLEASON, or sos'roN, MASSACHUSETTS;

UNIVERSAL OIU'IILET on JUNCTION 301:.

To all whom 'it may concern: 4

Be it known that, 1, JOHN L. GLEAsoN, of Boston,

in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts,

have invented certain new.and useful Improvements in Universal Outlet or Junction Boxes", of which the following'is a specification.

This invention relates to outlet-boxes used for joining the wires of concealed electrical wiring systems to I electric-light and other fixtures.

I Another object of the inventionis to The rigid conduits of concealed systemsior ceiling fixtures are run between or below the floor timbers, and are covered by the lathing and plastering of the ceiling, while the outlet boxes are set entirely within the surface of the ceiling plastering, their open ends usually being flush with the surface. Ordinarily such outlet boxes have been prade with four side holes substantially at right angles to each other and in the same plane, for the reception of conduits containing .electrical wiring. This has caused a difliculty in connecting conduits at right angles to each other, because it is not possibleto run conduits in two rectangular directionii in the same -plane between the ceiling and floor above;

'or between the walls of two rooms. This is due to the fact that the conduits which run parallel to the floor or wall timbers must be placed above or inside of the strapping or furring, while the transverse conduits. must lie below or outside of the edges of the timbers, and in the same 'plane with the strappingf Consequently when the wires in such conduits have to be joined, it has been previously necessary to offset one or more of the conduits, increasing the labor and making it difiicult to fish the wires through the same.

Oneof the objects of the present invention is to provide a single outlet or junction box which may be used to accommodateelectrical conduits passing in different directions and in different planes above the ceiling or within the walls of a room. i I

provide such an outlet or junction box with openings through which a flexible conductor may be passed, and with provisions fofipreventing movement of the flexible con- (luit toward the interior of the box after the same has been put' in place. I I a An outlet box constructed in accordance with my invention is shown in the drawings-forming a part of this specification, in which,

Figure 1 represents a fragmentary sectional view oi I a ceiling and floor timbers, with part of an electrical wiringsystem and an'outlet box in place. Fig. 2 rep-- resents a plan view of the outlet box. Fig. 3 represents a'sectional view on line 3.3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 represents a stud adapted to be used with the outlet box.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the figures. I

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 81,1906. Serial No. 319,472.

4 -1?atented'8ept. 3, min.

a floor are designated by the numeral 1. Transversely across these timbers are placed light wooden bars 2 which constitute the strapping or furring, and to which the latlis 3 are nailed. The laths aretransverse to the strapping 2, and therefore parallel to the. main timbers l, and'upon their under sides the plaster 4 is spread. The 'conduit s 5 and. 6 which extend transversely of the floor timbers must lie below the latter in order to avoid cutting into them, and consequently lie in the same plane as the strapping, while the conduits 7 and 8 extending at right angles to 5 and Gmus't be located above tlie plane of the strapping in order to run clear of the latter; Such a location is perfectly feasible, since these conduits run parallel to the floor timbers. and between them. With the old type of junction box in which slid the holes are at the same distance from its:e1 1d,-both transverse and longitudinal conduits cannot be connected without oflsetting.

one of them, and'the difficulty with which wires are drawn through an ofiset, conduit is well understood. I By my invention I provide an outlet box 9 which has a number of ports or narrow openings in its sides, these bein arranged in pairs of which the ports 10 and-11 constitute one pair at diametrically opposite points, lo-

cated near the open end of the junction box and at a considerable distance from the closed end 12 of the box. 13 represents one of the porE constituting the other pair which are arranged at diametrically opposite points and midway between the ports '10 and 11, being located at a greater distance from the open end of the box and I nearer the closed end 12 than are the ports 10 and l1.

The ports 10 and 11 are located wholly below the plane of the lower edges of the floor timbers; while the port 13 opposite sides of an imaginary plane passing through the outlet box perpendicular to its axis, and parallel to its closed end 12.. This arrangement permits the conduits 5 and 7 to be run in directions at right angles to each other, one of them in the plane of the strapping, and the other above such plane, and to be directly connected to the junction box without offsets. The conduits are secured to the box in the ordinary way by a check-nut 14 which abuts against theoutside of the. II --box, preventing undue insertion -of the conduit, and a conduit bushing 15 on the end of the conduit inside the box.

The box is. held in place byears 1617 on opposite sides from the latter by a, distanceslightly greater than the thickness of the-bars 2. In' addition to the ports -ior receiving the rigid conduits, the outlet bdx also has ports 19 20 for receiving theflexible conduits 21 22 surrounding other conductors. These ports 19 20 are shown in the present construction as being in the end 12 of the box, but they may also equally well be in the sides of the box, if desired. On the outside of the box are retainers 23 for securing the flexible conduits. These retainers consist each of a fiat spring'which is fastened to the box by a screw or stud 24, and has a yielding end lying close to the periphery of a port 19 or 20, preferably slightly overlapping the edge of the port. The 'ends' of these retainers.are recessed. on the arc of a circle concentric with the flexible conduit. 7

The flexible conduits are put in place after the outlet box has been secured. They are slipped outside of the conductors 25 from within the box, and are pushed out: ward through the ports 19 20, being guided by the conductors which they surround until their outer ends bring up against the insulating knobs 26 to which the conductors are tied. The free ends of the retainers 23 are engaged and displaced by the flexible conduits whenthe latter are pushed outward, but upon an attempt being made to pull the conduits inward','they engage the ends of their respective retainers, and press 1 them against the box, causing them to bite into the flexible conduits. As the endsof the spring retainers are blunt and the conduits are yielding, the former indent the latter, but without cutting the same, and serve as an'efiiectual lock to prevent the conduits being withdrawn in a direction toward the interior of the boxf This is of considerable importance for the reason that the material of which flexible conduits are made is very tough and difiicult to cut, so that fixture hangers usually find it more convenient to pull out and throw 5 I away the sections of conduit if they are too long, rather than to trim them off to the proper length. This practice is contrary to building and underwriters require- ,ments, but as the outletsand junctions are concealed after the fixtures are put in place, it is very difficult of 0 detection by inspectors. Howevenwhen my retainer is employed, it is impossible for the fixture hangerto remove the flexible conduits. v I

My outlet box is the only .one, so far as I am aware,

, with which it isfeasible to use both rigid andfiexible 5 conduits, as'hitherto ithas been the custom to use entirely different styles of boxes for these two classes of conduits. This made it necessary for dealers and contractors to carry a double/set of supplies. By my invention, however, the necessity of carrying a number of different styles of box is avoided.

1 An outlet box having openings in its side and end walls to receive electrical conduits, a short flat strip of spring metal mounted. on the outside of the box with one end near and the other end relatively remote from an opening, and a removable fastening securing the remote end of 5 the strip to the box and normally holding it fiat againstthe wall thereof, the end near the opening having a blunt edge and being recessed on a smooth curve corresponding to the shape of the opening and extending slightly over the edge thereof, whereby this end is sprung outward when a flexible conduit is passed outward through the opening and enibrace and indents the conduit, without cutting the same, when Kin attempt is made to draw it inward. H

2. An outlet box having openings in its side and end walls to receive electrical conduits, a short flat strip of 7 spring metal mounted onthc outside of the box with one end near and the other end relatively remote from one of said openings, the box wall having a depression or recess in which the strip is contained and which is shaped sinii larly to the strip, and a removable fastening securing the '80 remote end of the strip to the box and normally holding" it flat against the wall thereof, the end near the opening having; a blunt edge and bcing'recessed on a smooth curve correspondingto thefshape of the opening and extending slightly over the edge thereof, whereby this end is sprung outward when a flexible conduit is passed outward through the openingand'embraces andindents'the conduit wltlr out cutting the same, whenan attempt is made to draw it inward. I

In testimony whereof I have afiixcd my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

7 JOHN L. GLEASONL 'Witnesses ARTHUR H. BROWN,

' vA. C. RATIGAN. 

